About Me

It is my pleasure to welcome you to Speculating on SpecFic. This is a book blog dedicated to works of Speculative Fiction – science fiction, fantasy, horror, mythology, etc.

My name is Shaheen, and I am a 24 year old PhD student, studying Astronomy and Astrophysics in Australia.

I can’t remember ever not wanting to read. Books are a lovely way to wind down at the end of the day, and I love being introduced to new authors and books.

I have always read a lot of fantasy, both adult and young adult, and these days I read quite a bit of paranormal and dystopian young adult novels too.

Books:

Some of my favourite authors are:

J. R. R. Tolkien

Maria V. Snyder

Louise Cooper

George R. R. Martin

Brent Weeks

Jo Spurrier

Sam Bowring

Brandon Sanderson

Sarah Rees Brennan

J. K. Rowling

Jennifer Fallon

Garth Nix

Kate Elliott

Sean Williams

Laini Taylor

Jay Kristoff

Go ahead and judge me on those :p Also, if I forgot your name, please write it down and send a note with a cheque to ….

Kidding, kidding. Mostly.

Television:

I don’t watch much Sci-Fi TV – this always shocks people for some reason. Yes, I’m an astronomer, and no, I don’t enjoy Sci-Fi on TV/movies. Usually. Futurama is an exception.

I hate The Simpsons. With a passion. Don’t even get me started – I think it’s the most useless show ever (followed closely by its knock-offs, Family Guy and American Dad). Tragically, The Simpsons is my husband’s favourite show in the world: he can quote whole episodes.

My favourite shows are Supernatural (until S5. What have they DONE to that show?!), Smallville (early seasons, and later only the episodes with Oliver Queen in them), BBC’s Sherlock (Season 3, Season 3, Season 3!), Downton Abbey, NCIS (again, earlier seasons. I lost track at about S7), Game of Thrones (of course), Legend of the Seeker (it only had two seasons, and it was pretty bad, but I still re-watch it every now and then), Life (Damien Lewis, what else do you need to know?)

Other random things:

Aside from a brief stint at 16 where I wanted to be a firefighter, I’ve wanted to be an astronomer ever since I can remember. I have a friend from Kindergarten who says I told him I was going to study planets. I knew at 6 years old!

My favourite colour is purple – not that you’d know by looking at the website. I have a thing for pink owls, they’re so darned cute!

When I was younger, my parents would punish me by taking away my books. I didn’t really care when they took away TV time or playing outside time, but if they told me I couldn’t read that afternoon, I started behaving quick-smart!

I’m learning to crochet – I’ve made my first pair of gloves, and am hoping to learn how to make a crochet owl (pink of course)

My favourite movie is Aladdin. If I could marry a fictional character, it would be Aladdin. I have strong opinions on how one can’t usually buy Disney things with Jasmine, or the other non-white Disney characters, in Western countries. I loved going to Egypt and Dubai because I could buy Jasmine everything.

Copyright

All materials on this website have been produced by Speculating on SpecFic, with the exception of book covers, author photographs and book synopses, which have been supplied in press kits. Any material produced elsewhere has been used with permission.

No part of this website, including but not limited to the text, images, and design, may be copied or reproduced without permission.

Authors and publishers are welcome to use parts of reviews as long as proper credit (and link-backs if online) are provided.

Please use the contact form adjacent if you have any queries.

Disclaimer

The opinions expressed on Speculating on SpecFic are my own and do not reflect those of the author, publisher, or anyone else associated with the works reviewed. Comments express the thoughts of the those who wrote them, and do not reflect my own opinions. I reserve the right to moderate comments as I believe appropriate.

Have any other questions? There’s a Contact Me box in the footer, fill it out, and I’ll answer!